Chair



Nov. 14, 1944. N, A, DE vRlEs 2,362,746

CHAIR Filed June 9, 1942 "l' m Hm, v/A

INVENTOR MCI/01 AS 4. 0: VIP/[5 BY m. Ma.

ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 14, 1944 UNITED- STATES PATENT OFFICE onAnt; Nicholas A. De Vries, Flushing, N. Y. Application June 9, 1942, Serial No. 446,337

3 Claims, (01. laws) This invention relates to an improvement in chairs, more particularly to swivel chairs, and has for some of its objects the provision of such a chair which is so constructed that, if desired, it may be made of wood throughout.

A further object of the invention is the production of a swivel chair which is pivoted for tilting at the front edge of the seat. This eliminates completely a fault present in swivel chairs as heretofore constructed in that when the chair back is tilted rearwardly there is no tendencyof the feet of the occupant of the chair to be raised from the ground.

Another advantage in the construction provided by the present invention resides in the fact that the pivot of the chair is a substantial distance forward of the chair post on which the chair swivels so that the tendency of the chair to upset when the back and seat are tilted to the rear is so much reduced as practically to be eliminated.

Inasmuch as the present construction lends itself to employing wood throughout the entire chair, it will be appreciated that the weight of the chair is very materially reduced as compared with existing swivel chairs wherein a great deal of metal must be employed in the underbody which, of course, is objectionable from the standpoint of appearance.

In the accompanying drawing wherein an embodlment of the invention has been illustrated:

Fig. 1 is a view in perspective of an embodiment of the invention; and

Fig. 2 is a sectional side elevational view of the chair of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing in detail: 2 designates the chair base provided centrally with vertical post 4.

The post 4 receives a sleeve 6, the upper end of which is closed. The sleeve 6 is of such length as compared with the length of the post 4 that the lower end of the sleeve is kept out of contact with the base 2. By this construction the sleeve may readily be rotated on the post. To facilitate this rotation or swiveling, the upper end of the post is provided with a convex portion 8 which is received by a concavity it in the upper end of the sleeve, thereby providing a ball and socket effect.

Attached to or integral with the sleeve 6 and extending upwardly and forwardly therefrom are a pair of struts [2. These struts diverge so that at their outer ends they are spaced apart a distance equal to the width of the chair from the inside of one chair frame M to the other.

Th chair seat It and chair back Is and side frames l4 constitute a unitary structure, pivoted by the side frames [4 to the outer ends of the struts l2. In other words, the chair is pivoted for tilting at the front edge of the seat.

designates a tie piece extending from one strut l2 to the other, and secured to them both. This tie piece carries the leaves of a spring 22. Preferably the ends of the spring leaves are let into the tie piece as illustrated in Fig. 2.

The spring 22 extends beneath the chair seat rearwardly thereof, and directly overlies the sleeve 6, so that rearward tilting of the chair about the front edge of the seat is limited by contact ofthe spring with the sleeve. It will be appreciated that this limiting action is present throughout a complete 360 rotation of the chair on the post 4, due to the fact that the spring is secured to the chair and moves with it, and inasmuch as the axis of rotation of the chair is through the post 4 or the sleeve 6 the spring 22 necessarily always overlies the sleeve.

It has been found that by reason of the new and novel construction employed, wood may be used throughout in the construction of the chair with the assurance that the chair will be as strong and substantial as the swivel chairs now in everyday use, and wherein it is necessary to employ a great deal of unsightly metal parts. It is tobe understood, however, that the chair may be made in metal when desired.

It will be appreciated, also, that by pivoting the chair at the front edge of the seat there is no tendency to raise the feet of an occupant of the chair from the ground when the chair is tilted rearwardly. By the same token thetendency of the chair to upset when tilted rearwardly is practically reduced to nil.

It is to be noted, furthermore, that by reason of the novel construction employed the advantages above referred to are inherent in the chair throughout a full 360 angle of rotation 01' swiveling of the chair relative to its base.

The spring 22 too is made of wood, it having been found that such a spring is sufficiently rigid to impart a nice soft action to the chair, while excessive flexing of the spring is prevented by its contact with the upper end of the sleeve 6 before the spring has been excessively flexed.

It is to be understood that changes may be made in the details of construction hereinabove described within the purview of this invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A swivel chair comprising in combination a base, a pair of struts rotatably mounted on the base and extending upwardlyand forwardly of the vertical axis of the base, a seat for the chair pivoted at its front edge to the upper ends of said struts for tilting about a horizontal axis, a crossbar connection between said struts, and a spring beneath the chair seat and secured to said crossbar, said spring being in constant engagement with the chair seat and extending rearwardly thereof beyond the vertical axis of the said base.

2. A swivel chair comprising in combination a base, struts mounted onsaid base for rotation through 360 about a vertical axis relatively to said base, a seat for the chair pivoted at its 3. A swivel chair comprising in combination a base, a vertically extending post mounted thereon, a sleeve closed at its upper end rotatably mounted on said post, said sleeve terminating short of the said base, a pair of divergent struts extending from adjacent the lower end of said sleeve upwardly therefrom forwardly of the chair, a seat for the chair pivoted at its front edge to the outer ends of said struts to provide for pivotingvof the chair seat about a horizontal axis lying in front of the vertical axis of said post, and a leaf spring secured to said struts and extending beneath the chair seat rearwardly thereof over the top of said sleeve, whereby in all positions of the chair through 360 of movement about the vertical axis of said post tilting of the chair rearwardly will be limited by contact of the said spring with the top of said sleeve.

NICHOLAS A. DE VRIES. 

